Adhesive applying devices



July 18, 19 7 K. c. J. WEBSTER ADHESIVE APPLYING DEVICES Filed March 15, 1966 Inventor- Kennefh JG. Websier By his After-nay Quota K United States Patent 3,331,352 ADHESIVE APPLYING DEVICES Kenneth C. J. Webster, Leicester, England, assignor to United Shoe'Machinery Corporation, Boston, Mass., a corporation of New Jersey Filed Mar. 15, 1966, Ser. No. 534,513 Claims priority, application Great Britain, Apr. 3, 1965, 14,235/65 3 Claims. (Cl. 118-253) This invention relates to devices for applying adhesive and has for its primary object the provision of a novel and improved device for use in applying adhesive to work pieces, such for example as the breast covering flap of a shoe sole, which device is of simple and relatively inexpensive construction but at the same time dependable and effective in operation.

With this object in view, the herein illustrated device, has a suitable casing shaped to provide a well for receiving a quantity of adhesive and an adhesive applying roll mounted on the casing with a portion of its peripheral surface submerged in liquid adhesive in the well and another portion thereof exposed for use in applying adhesive to a work piece placed thereon. The device is provided, in accordance with features of the invention, with a member for clamping a work piece, such for example as the breast covering flap of a shoe sole, against an exposed portion of the roll, together with means for moving the clamping member to and away from an operative position in which it clamps a portion of the work piece against an exposed portion of the roll, and means responsive to movement of the clamping member away from said operative position, thus to release the work piece, for effecting a partial revolution of the roll, thus to present an exposed surface portion with a fresh supply of adhesive to the next work piece placed thereon. Preferably, and as herein illustrated, means are also provided for heating the casing to maintain the adhesive therein in heated liquid condition, as well as to heat the roll, and a pawl-andratchet mechanism is utilized to effect such partial revolution of the applying roll.

The above and other objects and features of the invention will appear in the following detail description of the embodiment illustrated in the accompanying drawings and will be pointed out in the claims.

In the drawing, the figure is a side elevation of the illustrative machine.

For applying adhesive to heel breast covering flaps of sohe soles the illustrative machine includes a knurled adhesive applying roll 13 made of steel and fixed for rotation on an axle 15 having its opposite end portions received in bearings provided in opposite side walls 17 of the machine. The roll 13 is approximately two and seven eights inches in diameter and dips into a trough 19 of an adhesive container 21. Rotation of the roll 13 causes it to pick up adhesive in the trough 19 and transfer it to an upper position in which it is applied to a work piece, provided by a heel breast covering formed on a shoe sole, presented to the machine in a manner hereinafter described.

Mechanism for rotating the roll 13 includes a sprocket 23 fixed on the axle 15. A drive sprocket 25 fixed on a shaft 27 rotates the sprocket 23, and thus the roll 13, through a chain 29. The shaft 27 is rotatably mounted in the walls 17 and has fixed to it a gear 31 meshing with a gear 33 in mesh with a drive gear 35. The gears 33 and 35 are respectively mounted for rotation on spindles 37 and 39 carried by a bracket 41 fixed on the adhesive container 21. The construction and arrangement of the illustrative machine is such that the drive gear 35 is 1'0- tated intermittently by means hereinafter described so that each time a work piece is presented to the adhesive 3,331,352 Patented July 18, 1967 applying roll 13 a portion of the roll freshly coated with adhesive is presented in said upper position.

The illustrative machine is for use with adhesive which is applied in a hot condition to synthetic soling materials commonly used in the manufacture of ladies shoes and for this reason the adhesive is heated by means of electrical heating cartridges 43 carried in the container 21. Sides of the container 21 are insulated against the passage of heat therethrough.

The heel breast covering flap of the sole being operated on in the machine is heated by maintaining said flap in contact with the hot adhesive on the roll 13 for a period of time (conveniently while a previously coated work piece is applied to the breast flap of a heel). A clamp, generally referred to by the reference number 45, has a leather lining 47 presenting a work piece engaging surface 49 complementary to the peripheral curvature of the roll 13. The clamp 45 holds the work piece being operated on against the adhesively coated roll, the leather lining 47 reducing the likelihood of undesirable marking of the outer surface of the sole. Prior to the flap coating operation the flap is reduced, to present a desirable edge thickness of the flap in the finished shoe, and roughed to provide a suitable surface for receiving the adhesive. Thus the flap does not present a flat surface to the roll 13 but is thicker in the middle with reduced marginal portions. To ensure these marginal portions being adequately heated a pair of adjustable screws 51 (one of these screws is visible in the drawing) are spaced apart axially of the roll to engage and press the marginal portions at opposite sides of the flap toward the roll. The screws 51 are screwed into the clamp 45 and may be adjusted therein to vary their pressure on a work piece.

The clamp 45 is secured, by means of a screw 53, to an arm 55 pivotally mounted on the spindle 39. The arm 55 is raised about the axis of the spindle 39 for the insertion of a work piece between the clamp and the roll 13. As the arm is raised (counter-clockwise about the spindle 39 viewed in the drawing) a pawl 57 loosely pivoted, by means of a pin 59, on the arm 55 rotates a ratchet wheel 61 counter-clockwise (viewed in the drawing) about the axis of the spindle 39. The ratchet wheel 61 is secured to the drive gear 35 so that rotation of the ratchet wheel effects rotation of the drive gear and through the connections previously described rotation of the adhesive applying roll 13 in a counter-clockwise direction. The thickness of adhesive adhering to the roll 13 is controlled by a doctor blade 63 which is attached to the adhesive container 21 and scrapes surplus adhesive from the roll as it is rotated. The doctor blade 63 is adjustable toward and away from the peripheral surface of the roll 13. A stop screw 65 in the arm 55 is set to engage an abutment surface 67, the stop screw 65 preventing contact between the clamp lining 47 and adhesively coated roll 13 when a work piece is not present in the machine.

The machine is conveniently mounted on a bench top 69 at the side of a heel support provided to aid an operator in securing an adhesively coated heel breast covering flap of a sole to the breast face of a heel mounted in the support thus to provide a sole and heel unit for later attachment to a shoe. In order to present a sole to the machine the operator depresses a treadle (not shown) to effect operation of a valve (not shown) which operates to direct air under pressure to a piston and cylinder device (not shown) vertically mounted beneath the bench top 69. A piston rod of said device has one end portion of a link 71 connected thereto, the opposite end portion of the link being pivotally connected to the arm 55 by means of a pin 73. On depression of the treadle heightwise movement of the link 71 is effected through air under pressure admitted to the piston and cylinder device, the link 71 raising the arm 55 about the axis of the spindle 39. As the arm 55 is raised the pawl 57 rotates the ratchet wheel 61 to cause rotation of the adhesive applying roll 13 as hereinbefore described. The construction and arrangement of the illustrative machine is such that in moving the arm 55 from its lowered to its raised position the roll 13 is rotated approximately one hundred and eighty degrees. A tensioning sprocket 70 is mounted for adjustment on the container 21 and is set to maintain the chain 29 at the correct tension. Upon release of the threadle, air under pressure is directed to the opposite end of the piston and cylinder device, thus moving link 71 and arm 55 downwardly.

A sole to be operated on is presented to the machine with its breast flap face to be coated with adhesive against the freshly coated upwardly directed portion of the knurled peripheral face of the roll 13. On release of the treadle air under pressure is redirected to said piston and cylinder device to urge the arm 55 downwardly about the axis of the spindle 39 to cause the clamp 45 to clamp the work between the roll 13 and the clamp. As the arm moves downwardly the loosely pivoted pawl rides over the teeth on the ratchet wheel 61. The arm 55 moves downwardly until the stop screw 65 engages the abutment surface 67 and the pressure with which the work is clamped is adjusted by adjustment of the stop screw 65 in the arm 55. As hereinbefore described, the adjustable screws 51 in the clamp are set to press reduced marginal portions of the breast flap against the coated roll. Restrictor valves (not shown) in the air circuit of the machine control the speed of movement of the arm 55 both toward and away from the roll 13. The work piece is clamped under pressure for a sufficient period of time to heat the heel breast covering flap portion of the sole adequately. Conveniently the machine operator may attach a previously treated sole to the breast face of a heel while said work piece is maintained under pressure in the machine. The work piece is released by depression of said treadle to cause the arm 55 to be raised, theroll 13 being rotated automatically so that it is ready to receive the next work piece to be operated on in the machine.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. A device for applying adhesive to a work piece comprising a casing shaped to provide a well for receiving a quantity of liquid adhesive, an adhesive applying roll, means rotatably mounting said roll on the casing with a portion of its peripheral surface submerged in the liquid adhesive in said well and other portions thereof exposed for applying adhesive to a work piece placed thereon, a member for clamping a work piece against said exposed portion of the roll, means for moving said member to and away from operative position in which it clamps a portion of a work piece against the exposed portion of the peripheral surface of the roll, and means for effecting a partial revolution of the roll in response to movement of said clamping member away from said roll.

2. A device for applying adhesive to a work piece in accordance with claim 1 wherein means are provided for heating said casing thus to maintain adhesive therein and said roll in heated condition.

3. A device for applying adhesive to a work piece as set forth in accordance with claim 1 wherein a pawl and ratchet mechanism are provided for eifecting a partial revolution of the applying roll in response to movement of the clamping member away from the roll.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 958,281 5/1910 Plant 118-209 1,098,693 6/1914 Stanbon 227-14 1,146,996 7/1915 Bowen 227-14 X 1,156,850 10/1915 Pettengill 227-14 1,407,026 2/1922 Greenough 118-263 2,584,683 2/1962 Elliot 118-253 X CHARLES A. WILLMUTH, Primary Examiner. R. I. SMITH, Assistant EJEaminer. 

1. A DEVICE FOR APPLYING ADHESIVE TO A WORK PIECE COMPRISING A CASING SHAPED TO PROVIDE A WELL FOR RECEIVING A QUANTITY OF LIQUID ADHESIVE, AND ADHESIVE APPLYING ROLL, 